Tim Kish Officially Hired As Sooners' Linebackers Coach

The University of Oklahoma officially announced the hiring of Tim Kish as the Sooners new linebackers coach Tuesday night.

Kish, the former Arizona interim head coach fills the vacancy left by Brent Venables' departure for Clemson.

"Tim has great experience in coaching linebackers and also has experience as a defensive coordinator. He has a long track record of developing linebackers and worked alongside Mike (Stoops) for eight years at Arizona," said OU head coach Bob Stoops. "I value his experience and his understanding of our defensive scheme."

"I'm very excited, first and foremost, for myself and my family to be at such a prestigious institution and football program," said Kish. "The fact that I've known Bob Stoops for over 30 years and have coached with Mike Stoops the last eight years at Arizona made it very enticing for all of us to work together. I'm really looking forward to contributing to the football program and helping it continue the high standards expected at Oklahoma."

Kish is a long-time defensive coach, beginning his career in 1976, and has served as a linebackers coach on the collegiate level since 1984. He served as a part of the Arizona coaching staff since 2004, beginning as the linebackers coach and working his way up to Interim head coach replacing Mike Stoops when he was let go by the Wildcats.

"We've been together before exchanging ideas and his coaching philosophy has many similarities to what we've been doing at Oklahoma. I feel very confident about Tim and I feel that his arrival, along with Mike, will be a seamless transition for both our coaching staff and players as we look to build on the success we've already accomplished at Oklahoma," added Stoops. "Tim is also a great fit as a tireless recruiter who has a strong reputation in the nation's southwest and west and will be a valuable asset for our program in that regard."

Kish was not retained as part of the coaching staff after the Wildcats hired Rich Rodriguez to take over the program.

The 57-year-old coach was reportedly already in Norman, Oklahoma when he accepted the position with the Sooners.